#anyvision

Microsoft recently announced that it has pulled its minority investment in AnyVision, a facial recognition startup. AnyVision made headlines last year, although not in a good way, for allegedly surveilling Palestinians. That said, a Microsoft-funded investigation led by former US Attorney General Eric Holder determined that AnyVision's technology doesn't power mass surveillance in the West Bank. Microsoft chose to exercise caution nonetheless, opting not just to pull the investment in AnyVision but stating it would halt any and all minority investments in companies selling facial-recognition technology.

As Microsoft posted on the website for M12, the company's venture investment fund, being a minority investor doesn’t offer "the level of oversight or control that Microsoft exercises over the use of its own technology." This is an especially worrying proposition for Microsoft when the company in question sells sensitive technology like facial recognition software.

According to Microsoft’s aforementioned independent investigation; "AnyVision technology has not previously and does not currently power a mass surveillance program in the West Bank that has been alleged in media reports." The company made the announcement on March 27th, but it was still not enough to soothe unease, ultimately leading to the company pulling its investment. The move leaves industry analysts wondering about the future of facial recognition technology, as there’s likely no shortage of investors lined up to take Microsoft’s place, each with their own interests and agendas.

There was no publicly available timeline for when Microsoft would offload its AnyVision stake, a spokesperson told Reuters.

AnyVision had been accused of using facial recognition to surveil Palestinians around the West Bank, contradicting Microsoft’s promise to avoid any uses of the tech that impinged on democratic freedoms. However, an audit found no evidence of the claimed mass surveillance…